England are heading in the “right direction” under interim manager Gareth Southgate and will be looking to implement some fresh tactics in Friday’s World Cup showdown against Scotland, midfielder Jordan Henderson has said.

Following an underwhelming home win over Malta and a lacklustre scoreless draw in Slovenia in World Cup qualifiers last month, Southgate has two more games to convince the Football Association (FA) that he is the right man for the job.

“The manager has done brilliantly since being given the opportunity,” Henderson, who captained England for the first time against Slovenia, told reporters.

“The players are very supportive of him and we feel as though we are going in the right direction. On the training pitch, we have learnt a lot and we are trying to put those ideas into a game situation,” the Liverpool skipper added.

“So hopefully we can put that into practice in the game and hopefully the performance is at a high level. If we do that, I’m sure we’ll get the three points.”

Henderson said England should not use the heated atmosphere against Scotland to do something “silly” and instead channel their aggression in the right manner.

“Emotionally, we need to be controlled. Aggression is really important but it needs to be the right level, not making fouls, not being silly,” he added.

“It’s about being hungry and having the desire to win the ball, to go and score a goal. It’s really important but it’s a fine line between aggression and over the top.”

England currently top Group F with seven points from three games, while Scotland sit fourth on four points.